


Sweet as Strawberry Wine

by the-deathboy-ghostking (GraeRae)



Series: Leap of Faith [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Dead Bianca di Angelo, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Mentions of Cancer, Minor Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Minor Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace Smut, bar au, bartender!Nico di Angelo, singer!Will Solace, solangelo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2018-05-28
Packaged: 2019-02-10 17:35:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 20,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12916848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GraeRae/pseuds/the-deathboy-ghostking
Summary: This work is being rewritten under the title "Leap of Faith".





	1. Hey, Bartender

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, people. I know, I know it's been awhile. Let's not look at the date of the last published thing of mine, please. So, I have this thing for combining Nico and alcohol? I don't know why. I barely drink myself.  
> (And no, I have not read Trials of Apollo. So I have no idea about anything canon with Nico and Will.)
> 
> Rewrite link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14958965/chapters/34665599

Working at one of the only bars in the small college town probably wasn’t the best job for Nico. He didn’t really like people and bars are usually full of people and usually, college students didn’t tip. It was one of the only bars in town that wasn’t a sports bar or sketchy. But it was fairly close to the campus so Nico usually walked or rode his bike. And he liked the owner, she treated him like family and trusted him with a key.

Tuesdays were his favorite night because the owner had decided to start an Open Mic night, including a pretty nice karaoke machine. She noticed plenty of people came in for Thirsty Thursdays and Wednesday’s Hump Day Happy Hour but not too many people came in and thus the Open Mic night had been born.

While Tuesdays were popular, it wasn’t popular enough for full staff. It just him at the bar and Frank, who worked as a regular bouncer on the weekends, worked the karaoke machine.Tips were decent on Tuesdays as the students who came in weren’t the type to throw back drink after drink and tipped. And since he was the only bartender, he didn’t have to share his tips.

Open Mic Night at the bar usually drew in an interesting crowd of college students: wannabe musician douches who carried their guitars all around campus, English majors and their “thought-provoking and socially aware” slam poetry, nervous girls who thought they'd finally find their courage in the form of liquid only to run off the stage to puke it all up. Granted, in the mix of these kinds, there were some great ones that Nico found entertaining.

This particular Tuesday had brought in a new crowd that Nico hadn’t seen since the start of the semester. He watched from the bar as he took glasses to the wash sink, dunking them several times in the suds and then into the two rinse sinks. A blond boy approached the mic and pulled his guitar around from his back. Nico sighed. A guitar douche. Which Nico thought was a shame because the boy was rather cute. Not Nico’s type, more of a laid-back surfer type. Nico’s usual taste consisted of darker haired and brooding, not much unlike himself. Surely, a therapist could crack that one open but Nico shook himself from the thought as the boy cleared his throat into the mic.

“Sorry.” He gave a low chuckle. He pushed the sleeves of his red hoodie up on his arms. “Hi, my name’s Will. I’m just going to uh, play a cover.”

Nico could tell he was nervous as Will strummed the strings lightly, checking the tune and his mind shifted from annoyance to sympathy for Will. People shifted uncomfortably in their seats waiting for Will to begin his song. He began a chord progression that Nico knew all too well.

“I heard there was a secret chord that David played and it pleased the lord but you don’t really care for music do you?”

Hallelujah was covered a lot in the bar. But Nico could recognize a good voice and Will had one and did a good rendition of the song. The entire bar had gone quiet and faced the stage. Will, who seemed really absorbed into the music, hadn’t taken notice of the whole bar staring at him. His eyes remained closed or on his fretboard.

His voice was really beautiful. Just natural, raw talent that had taken Nico by surprise. The applause was almost deafening in the small bar. He smiled with a flushed face and hopped off the stage, twisting his guitar onto his back. Will bounded to the bar and tapped his hands nervously on the counter until Nico came around to serve him.

“ID?” Will fumbled for his wallet, grabbing the plastic card and handing it over to Nico. A quick glance at the birth date confirmed he was over twenty-one. He held the card up, comparing Will to the photo on the ID.

Nico looked at him in closer detail. His blonde hair was kind of curly and was several tones. His eyes were a bright blue and his eyelashes were long. His red hoodie sleeves were still pushed up on his forearms, showing leather bands wrapped around his wrists. He was still nervously rapping his knuckles on the bar. Nico looked up from the bar top and asked what Will wanted as he handed back the ID.

Ah, uhm....Rum and Coke. Please.”

Nico grabbed a glass and shoveled ice into it. He quickly splashed a shot of rum in before grabbing the soda gun.

“You sounded really good out there,” Nico said over the sound of the rushing liquid.

“Yeah?” Will gave a smile as he loosened his shoulders, letting go of his nerves.

“Trust me. I hear a lot of renditions of that song on that mic, and I usually feel like stuffing my ears with cotton.”

“Thanks!” Will said as he slid a bill across the bar.

Nico took the bill and pinged in the amount into the register. The cash drawer popped out. He normally didn’t talk so much to the guests. Just took their order, made it, took the cash, and went on to the next person. Will’s smile and bouncy attitude drew him in.

“That was your first performance, right? I don't recall ever seeing you sing here before.”

Will grinned. “Yeah. I’ve been really nervous about coming to perform. I’ve been working up the courage since the beginning of the semester. I want to eventually start performing my own music, but I’ve never really performed for a crowd before so I figured to start off with some covers.”

He drank from his cup and made a face.

“What?” Nico asked, feeling self-conscious for some reason.

“It tastes like cough syrup.”

Nico laughed. “Yeah, sorry. That’s what you get with some alcohols.” He noticed a couple of people standing on the other side of the bar. “I’ll be back.”

After the couple, a few more people came up to the bar. The karaoke had started up again and people were leaving their seats to get more beer or get in line to sign up for a song.

Nico turned back to Will, watching him quickly down the concoction and almost slam the glass down with an even worse look of disgust. Nico held back a laugh. What the hell was wrong with him tonight?

“So,”  Will started as he ran a finger around the rim of the glass. “Can you recommend something that doesn’t taste like cough syrup?”

Nico grabbed another glass. He looked under the bar at the different liquor bottles. “Do you want to try the more expensive stuff?”

“As long as it doesn’t taste like that.” Will slid the empty glass back to Nico.

He took the glass and placed it in the wash sink. He mixed the new drink and took Will’s cash.

Will took a hesitant sniff, deeming it safe to sip. He happily looked up, “Nice, is that root beer?”

“Yeah, I think it tastes better that way.”

Nico looked at the clock. It was 11:30, bar time. He whistled and motioned with his two fingers in a roundup motion. Frank looked up and caught the signal. Several people got out of their seats and approached the bar. Frank kindly waited until the girl at the mic was done singing before taking control of it. “All right, for anyone who is not used to Nico’s wonderful people skills: it’s last call and you all have about a half hour before we close up shop. No more karaoke sign-ups either. The next ten are cued.”

Glasses piled around Nico as patrons returned them to the bar. Several more people put in their last drink orders. He looked up and noticed Frank was going around tables and collecting any stray drinks and bringing them up to the bar as well. He then left to take down the mic.

Thankfully, most of the patrons had trudged out the door. Nico picked up a rag and made his way to the small, bistro tables. He turned off the neon signs as he walked past the windows. He and Frank worked efficiently. Nico liked working with Frank. He understood haste and getting out as fast as possible. But tonight, Nico moved slowly in a languid fashion. He wiped down the tables as Frank bustled around him, dragging the AV equipment into a closet and grabbing cleaner, rushing to the bathrooms.

The people who got last drinks hovered around the bar as they finished. One last group of four girls crowded around Will. They murmured their awe. “You’re going to be here every week now, right?” and giggled when Will turned scarlet.

“Can we buy him a drink?” One of the girls asked.

Will sent him a look over their heads with a quick shake of his and eyes wide.

“Sorry, that was last call. About ten minutes ago.” Nico responded and caught Will’s look of relief. The girl’s all turned with a pout. Will quickly changed his face to a look of empathetic understanding. They shuffled out the door and Will sighed.

Nico threw the rag over his shoulder and went back behind the bar.

“Thanks.”

“No problem,” Nico said as he began washing the glasses that littered the bar, collecting random bills and coins left behind as tips. Nico took the rag off his shoulder and wiped down the bar. Will swung his guitar back to his front. He quietly sang to himself. “Closing time. One last call for alcohol so finish your whiskey or beer. Closing time.You don't have to go home but you can't stay here.”

Nico looked up from his task of cleaning the bar with a quirked eyebrow. Of all the songs. He shook his head with a slight smirk.

“It seemed appropriate,” Will reasoned. “Thanks again for saving me from the girls. They were really persistent. Can I buy you a drink as a thank you?What's your poison?”

“Whiskey,” Nico shared.

Will placed a handful of ones down on the bar. “Don't make me drink alone,” he coaxed as he brought his drink to his lips.

“Still nursing that?” Nico asked as he poured himself a whiskey, neat. He normally didn’t drink on the job, but the smiling blond in front of him insisted and he just couldn’t seem to refuse him.

“Still kind of fighting that first drink,” he responded, sipping carefully from the much tastier drink.

“Hey! Frank!” Nico shouted. “Want a drink?”

“No, thanks!” Frank bellowed as he came back from the bathrooms, cleaning supplies bucket in hand. “I love cleaning on Tuesdays. Not one speck of vomit.”

He shoved everything back into the closet and locked it. He walked to the bar, taking in the sight of Will light strumming his guitar and now singing the chorus. “I know who I want to take me home. I know who I want to take me home.” Frank snorted while standing next to him. He handed Nico the key to the closet.

“Sure about that drink?” Nico asked, holding up his own glass to show Frank wouldn’t be drinking alone.

“I gotta head back to the dorms. Test in the morning. Are you okay closing up on your own?” Frank shifted a look at Will who had stopped playing to take a drink from his glass.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

Frank nodded and made his way to the door. Will turned to watch Frank leave.

“Sorry. I’m holding you up, huh?”

Nico looked at his watch. It was barely midnight, they were making excellent time for closing. “Nah, I don’t have class until 11. I’m a night owl anyway.”

“Yeah, but you’d probably rather be somewhere else other than at work.” Will drank more.

Nico normally would rather be back in his dorm, taking a shower and then snuggling into bed and playing video games.  He shrugged. “Being here isn’t so bad.”

Will blushed and hurriedly drank the rest of his glass. “Still, I really don’t want to be an inconvenience for you.” Nico reached over and grabbed the glass. He took his time cleaning the last glass and put it on the rack.

He turned off the lights around the bar. Will made his way to the door as Nico turned off the other lights above the stage area.

“So, do you live in the dorms?” Nico asked after locking the door.

“Yeah, I live in Apollo Hall. That’s where the music majors pretty much all live.”

“Is that its actual name?” Nico gave a quiet laugh, which sounded more like a snort of disbelief.

“Yeah, I think it was named that before it was for music majors. But it works out...So, do you live in the dorms?”

“I live in Dorner Hall. It’s the main building.”

“Oh! Gotcha. Well, it’s in the same direction as mine. Is it weird to walk together?”

Nico shook his head and they started off across the street. Will adjusted his guitar strap a little bit and looked over at the darker haired boy as he took long strides. Will quickened his pace to keep up with him. They walked in relative silence.  It was a good twenty-minute walk and it was companionable silence between them. Their steps quietly rustling leaves and Will’s guitar making quiet _bbngs_ as the strings bounced as he walked.

They both slowed to a stop as the reached a parting in the sidewalk. “My hall is this way,” Nico explained, waving a hand nonchalantly at the traditional looking building.

“Gotcha. Nico, right?” Nico nodded. Will smiled and said,” Well, it was nice meeting you. I’ll probably become a regular on open mic nights.”

“Cool, I look forward to it,” Nico answered. Will continued walking on the straight path as Nico walked onto the forking path. He paused and turned back. “Hey, Will!...it was nice meeting you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Both boys share my taste of alcohol. I truly believe Rum and Coke tastes like cough syrup. (spiced) Rum is soooo much better with root beer. And whiskey is just heaven soooo. 
> 
> I just really needed to start writing again and publishing it. I didn't know whether to publish this all at once when I had it completed. Or if I should have one chapter and just section it out. Also, sorry if it's weird that I made Nico able to play classic guitar. I had just got back from watching Coco and my feelings may have leaked into this fic......  
> At the time of posting this I have two parts pretty much complete. But I think it'll have more than that. Soooo 2/? "Chapters" so far.  
> Comments are always appreciated.


	2. Week Four

“So, be truthful...how bad was that song?” Will asked Nico from across the bar. He had been coming to Open Mic night the past three weeks and even came to a special Saturday night karaoke. He had made a habit of staying past last call, buying Nico a drink, and indulging in conversation with him. This week, Week Four, he had decided to try out an original on the Tuesday audience, his confidence in his voice building. The audience seemed to enjoy it, especially the females some of whom happily crowded him after his performance. Drinks were bought and he may have had one too many shots.

But now in the quiet of closing, Nico passed him a glass of water, refusing to give him more alcohol. “This is for Frank’s benefit. He really hates cleaning vomit.”

“Thank you!” Frank's voice came from the back as he switched out a keg for Nico. “Anything else?” Frank asked as he rinsed his hands.

“Naw, I've got it from here. Give Hazel my love.”

“It's too late for me to visit her,” Frank said quietly, his ears red.

“You’ve been chomping at the bit since 11:15 to get out of here. I'm her brother, not her keeper. Besides, I like you, Frank.” Nico clapped a hand on Frank's broad shoulder to solidify his point.

Frank waved him off. “Alright.” He smiled. “See ya around.”

“So, the song?” Will asked as Frank went out the door. His tone hesitant and face hopeful.

Nico wiped down the bar. “The whole truth? The lyrics are good….may need to work on the melody though. Just...the music doesn’t seem to match the tone of the words. Your voice is beautiful though”

Will reddened at the compliment. Not knowing how to respond to it, he focused on his guitar melody. “Yeah, that’s my struggle. I just recently learned the guitar. I wish I had my piano, the chords come easier to me that way.”Will’s usual smile was replaced with a gloomy look.

“Oh, hey. Man, come on, don’t take it too harshly. Obviously, the crowd liked it tonight.” Nico said, trying to comfort Will. He walked around the bar and sat on the stool next to Will.

Will looked over at Nico. “Eh, I should have waited. It wasn’t ready.” He rubbed his temples and drank more of his water.

“Hey, what do I know. I just make the drinks. Everyone else seemed to really enjoy it! I think you put too much pressure on yourself. Just have fun with it. Don’t push it so much, yeah?” Nico grabbed the guitar from its resting position up against the bar.

He plucked at the strings and ran his fingers across the frets. It wasn’t perfect sounding, as though Nico had plenty of learning but was out of practice. Will watched with a dumbstruck face. Soon, a melody formed. It was very traditional sounding and didn’t have the stereotypical chord progressions you would hear on an acoustic guitar. The sound was a little weird with the steel strings, but Nico could play classic style guitar.

“So…your lyrics have a romantic connotation to them, but the song itself isn’t coming off like it, much angrier. I think you need to rework how you want it to sound. Unless it’s a breakup song...”

Nico looked over at Will, his eyebrows raised. Nico continued playing. It seemed like it was the only style he knew, not that he was recommending a sound like what he was playing. Although, Will noticed it was romantic sounding. But that was probably because it was Spanish or something. Spanish was a romantic language, did that translate into music? Wait, different kind of romance. Will did not like his brain on alcohol.

“Is that how it’s coming off? A break up song. Ugh. I guess, I wrote the lyrics while we were together...I’ve been trying to fit the melody to it.”

He watched Nico carefully, focusing his attention away from the drunken tangent his mind was trying to launch. Nico’s black hair was pulled into a half ponytail that seemed to suit his style of easy going badass. A silver skull ring glinted on his left index finger as it flew across the fingerboard. How had Will never noticed he wore a ring before? His face which was usually kind of a scowl had lightened into more of a look of content. He suddenly stopped playing, his contented face going back to its scowl as though he remembered why he didn’t like playing.

“Whoa,” Will whispered.  “What the heck? How come you never play on Tuesdays! That was awesome.”

“It’s just a little something my mom taught me.” Nico answered with a shrug.

“Was that Spanish?”

“No, Italian. My last name is di Angelo.” Nico answered as he plucked a scale, looking down at the guitar. His eyes glazed a little bit and he set the guitar back down.

In a drunken moment of honesty, Will blurted. “That means of angels, right? Or angelic….It suits you.”

Nico bit his lip as a laugh erupted. He turned to grab his glass from across the bar and noticed it was empty. He let out a small sigh and hefted across the bar. “What are you doing?” Will asked, laughing at the sight of Nico’s willowy frame stretched across the countertop. 

“Grabbing more alcohol.” Nico answered with a grunt reaching to the small ledge where they kept the most used liquor. Granted, it was easier to reach when one was on the correct side of the bar. Will put a steady hand on Nico’s calf.

“Aha!” He shouted victoriously as his hand wrapped around the neck of the whiskey bottle.  Will released him and sat back down on his stool. Nico slid back, setting his feet on the floor, his shirt pulled up as he slid. Will blushed and averted his gaze from Nico’s exposed skin.

Nico poured the liquor into his glass and took a swig. “So what about you? What’s your last name?”

“Solace.”

Nico laughed. Will liked the sound of it, just not at his expense.

“It’s not funny.”

“No, sorry. It’s just...your name is Solace. You live in Apollo Hall.”

“Yeah?” Will urged, trying to find out why Nico found this information funny.

Nico fixed him with a look that made Will feel like he should have been able to follow where he was going with it. “Apollo is the Sun god. Your last name, if you break it down... Sol means sun. Sorry, it’s not funny, that’s not why I’m laughing. It just suits you.”

“It suits me?” Will gave a look of disbelief.

“My name can suit me, but you, with your blonde hair and living in Apollo hall, your name can’t suit you? I don’t look one bit angelic, but you-you look like the sun.” Nico’s voice had a strange tone to it. It started off almost angry and then trailed into a soft whisper as he noticed the words he was saying. Nico winced bashfully and looked down at his whiskey glass on his lap. He looked up at Will, finding a stupid grin on Will’s face. He leaned in and kissed Nico. Nico’s face flushed red and he quickly stood, his eyes squinting.

“Shit, did I not read this right?” Will asked, suddenly embarrassed and standing as well. The shock of Nico pulling away from him sobered him. Nico set his glass on the bar. He then grabbed Will’s shirt, twisting the fabric in his fist, and pulled Will to him. He stared at Will; chest heaving, eyes searching. Will couldn’t tell if he was angry or just surprised. He didn’t like the feeling in his stomach Nico’s gaze was causing.

They stood like that for what seemed forever but in reality was only a few moments. Will’s mouth had gone dry and he desperately wanted a drink of water but he was locked in place. Nico was tall and lanky but it was deceptive how strong he was.

“I’m reading this wrong. I can leave. I will leave.” Will whispered, holding his hands up in surrender.

“Sorry. I have trust issues.” Nico answered thickly, releasing Will’s shirt. He attempted to smooth out the wrinkles he had caused.

“You can trust me.” He tentatively rested his hands on Nico’s hips.

“Thanks, I find solace in that.”

“Did you just-?” Nico grinned, very satisfied with his joke. Will snorted. “Never would have taken you for a funny type.”

“I’m drunk. I’m a funny drunk.” Nico explained matter-of-factly. “I think you’re a serious drunk.”

“I don’t think I’m drunk anymore,” Will said quietly.

Nico cupped Will’s face between his hands. Will turned hot under his touch. The other boy's eyes were closed but he was paused. As if he was unsure to move forward more. Will tentatively moved in to close the gap between their lips. He moved slowly, trying to not be abrupt and push Nico away again. Will tenderly kissed Nico, angling his face up to reach.

He took cues from Nico, only adding more pressure when he felt it from the other boy first. Not parting his lips until he felt Nico's part. Nico's hands moved away from Will's face and threaded into his hair.

He leaned into Nico, pushing him against the bar. His hands left Nico's slim hips, and wound behind his back. Nico's breathing hitched in his throat. He removed his fingers from Will's hair and placed them on the his chest. He didn't shove him away, but Will understood and backed off; giving Nico space to breathe.

Nico pushed away from the bar. Will opened the walking space more. He drank his water, chugging it in one gulp. Nico walked behind the bar, taking the empty glasses and washing them in silence. He put the whiskey away and looked at the clock.

1:07. So, 12:52 real time.

Will sheepishly picked up his guitar and strung it over his back. He made his way to the door, and looked back at Nico, not knowing if he should hang back or walk home without him. They didn't walk back Week Two or that Saturday, so it wasn't like it was a _Thing._ He watched Nico shuffle from one light switch to another. Will opened the door and left.

“Hey, wait up.” Nico called out as he turned the key.

Will looked back several yards and waited for Nico to jog to his location. His heart beat wildly in his chest.

“You know that the school has a piano lab, right? You can just sign up to use one.”

Will raised an eyebrow, thoroughly confused.

“You said you missed your piano. For song writing. Use one of the school's.”

“Oh!” Will said, catching up.

“I totally forgot about them. How did you know?”

“Hazel is in the fine arts club. Sometimes when she's stressed she'll check one out.”

Will nodded. They walked in silence and each footfall echoed in Will's brain. One step closer to saying goodnight. He didn't want to say goodnight. He wanted to talk. He really wanted to talk about that kiss. Nico seemed set in keeping the silence. He looked over at him, watching Nico keep his face forward, eyes down. Will found himself walking sideways, foot crossing over foot. Nico didn't slow his pace.

“Can we talk?”

“About the kissing?” Nico asked, keeping his gaze down. “I'd rather not.”

“Are….are we okay?” Will felt like he was unraveling. He was just making headway on making a friend and then he went and blew it. He wanted to blame the alcohol, but really he would have been just as impulsive if he was sober.

“We're fine,” Nico answered, irritation seeping into his tone.

“Don't seem fine.” Will mumbled.

Nico slowed down and looked at him thoughtfully. His brows creased and then his dark eyes softened. He held out his hand, an apologetic gesture. Will paused, staring at the slender hand as though it may bite. Nico wiggled his fingers impatiently. Will took hold and they continued walking. In silence.

After a few minutes. “Soooooo, we're still not going to talk about it, huh?”

“The hand holding isn’t going to keep you quiet, is it?” Nico laughed. “Too fuzzy.”

“Feelings?”

Nico laughed again. “No. My head.” He chuckled a little more and Will felt his face grow warm.

They reached the split in sidewalks faster than Will had wished for. Nico looked down at their intertwined fingers. “I suppose this isn't the part where you ask me to join you in your dorm?” Will asked, trying to keep the tone light and playful but it came out more hopeful than anything.

“I have to get some sleep.” Nico replied. Will's heart beat fast. It wasn't a flat out rejection, there was a possibility in that sentence that if he weren't tired or head was fuzzy that he'd invite Will up. It was almost one thirty in the morning, completely understandable to not have guests. Nico brought Will's intertwined fingers to his lips. Will’s stomach fluttered. He released Will's hand and dug his cell out of his pocket. He unlocked the screen and opened a new contact form. He handed the phone to Will.

“I'd like to see you before the sun goes down. Maybe get lunch or something?”

“Uh, sure. Yeah, that would be great!” He happily punched in his number.

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

Will very much wanted to kiss him good night. But figured that was too much.

“My phone, Will.”  Nico said, his hand outstretched.

“Right.” Will handed the phone back.

Nico leaned forward and lightly kissed Will. He quickly turned around and jogged to his hall.

“Good night!” Will said loudly. Nico waved behind him, not looking back.

Will was exhausted by the time he reached his dorm. His roommate snored and didn't stir as Will entered their room.

Will's phone pinged in his pocket. New text.

_You dork, you left the contact name blank so now it says new contact._

Will quickly typed back. _Sounds like a me thing._

_What do you want me to put as your name?_

_Whatever you want, it's your contact list._

_Okay, Sunshine._

_Anything but that!_

_…..okay._

A quick drop in his stomach. Will didn't know how Nico texted. Was that a tease? Will got ready for bed and heard another ping.

It was a screenshot of Nico's conversation window with Will. Will bit back a laugh. The contact name field was Solace. With a _sun_ emoji on either side.

_Goodnight._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos and bookmarks!


	3. Saturday Lunch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short one. I've been fighting this little fic. The holidays just kinda took my routine away. Anyway so I'll post what I have written so far.

Hazel stared at her brother from across the table. Nico avoided her gaze. Frank brought over their drinks and scooted next to Hazel.

“Thanks, man.” Nico said as Frank passed him a beer bottle. Hazel happily drank her Shirley Temple. 

The three of them tried to get lunch at least once a month that wasn't in the school cafeteria. They took Frank's car off campus to some sports bar with wings. Hazel continued her look at her brother. 

“So…..is this Will guy ever going to join us for lunch?” She asked innocently, fishing the cherry out of her drink.

Nico focused a glare on Frank. “That was shared in private, Frank.” 

“She's small but persuasive. I'm sorry.” 

Nico nodded his understanding, he had been on the other side of Hazel's pestering for secrets. “He's not my boyfriend or anything, sis.”

“You've been too afraid of a relationship for so long, Nico. I worry about you.”

“It's normal to not be in a relationship.” Nico countered. He hated talking about relationships, it always dredged up the past and the past was something he very much liked to stay out of. 

“Ever since the whole thing with P-.” Nico quickly cut her off.

“You really do not need to repeat his name….like ever.” Nico said in an agitated tone as he rapped his knuckles against the tabletop. 

Frank propped up menu in front of his face, indicating he wanted to stay out of the sibling squabble. 

“You've been afraid. And it's understandable. But, it's been almost four years. You came out. You professed your uber huge crush on a straight dude. Now, you move on. With a guy who's obviously into guys.” Hazel nodded her head sagely as though she were explaining something simple. But it wasn't simple at all. Especially not for Nico. As though highschool wasn't hard enough, trying to get through it while being closeted, it sometimes was too much. 

Frank coughed quietly into his hand. The siblings looked up from each other and noticed their waitress was standing awkwardly with her tablet ready to take their order. Hazel blushed and apologized. They ordered their food and Frank tried to steer the conversation away from boyfriends. Hazel was persistent.

“Look, Nico.” she sighed. “I’d like to meet him, he sounds like a great guy.”

“We’re not even dating.” Nico reasoned.

“Isn’t it better to meet him before you two possibly date? Then there’s no crazy pressure about meeting the family, right? Right, Frank? It was easier meeting my brother before we started dating?”

Frank laughed. “Babe, I met your brother before I met you.”

Hazel pouted. “I’m turning twenty-one soon. I’ll just meet him at the bar eventually.”

“Eventually, I’d like you to meet him. Just, not now.I still need to figure out stuff.”

The rest of lunch went by pleasantly enough. Hazel had dropped the whole subject and started talking about her art portfolio. She still had a lot of work to do before Thanksgiving break and it was kind of stressful but she really wanted to spend time with Frank.

After lunch, Nico was dropped off back at his dorm, Hazel and Frank had made some weekend getaway plan. “Alright, “ Nico said as he got out of the car. “Behave and get home tomorrow at a decent time?”

“Call him.” Hazel commanded as Frank pulled away.

Nico decided to take a nap instead. 

He had decided this as he walked up the stairs to his dorm. He liked living in the single dorms; he didn’t have to worry about a roommate. And most of the people in his hall seemed to have the same state of mind as him. There was barely more than three people in the lounge at a time. Sometimes, a few of them would make cookies together. But overall it was a very quiet floor. And very easy to nap on a Saturday afternoon.


	4. Saturday Afternoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Some changes were made to previous chapters. Nothing big, mostly grammar and some characterization of Nico. He came off a little too pissy in some of the interactions.

    The nap didn’t last long because his phone chirped at him. He sat up, blearily rubbing his eyes and searching for his phone. He saw the bright yellow sun emoji before he read the name. Seeing it sent a jolt up his spine and he sat up straighter. He opened the message from Will.

_Wanna_ _watch a movie?_

_...Or not?_

    The first message was from about thirty minutes ago, the second was the one that woke him. Nico pressed the call button not wanting to deal with texting.

    “Hello?” Will answered as if he was confused about why Nico was calling.

    “Hey, sorry I was napping when you sent the first text,” Nico explained as he ran a hand through his hair, trying to flatten where sleep had mussed it up and made it stick up.

    “It’s like three in the afternoon.”

    “Yeah, I went to lay down around 1:45, that’s a perfectly acceptable time to nap on the weekend.”

    Will laughed. It was a nice sound. Nico had kinda already forgotten it from earlier in the week. Nico stretched out his legs and then his toes before getting out of bed. 

    “So you want to watch a movie?”

    “Yeah. My roommate is out of town and I’m bored.”

    “To clarify...you want to watch a movie with me, right?”

    Will laughed again. “Yes, sorry I wasn’t more specific. Would you, Nico, like to come to my dorm and watch a movie with me? It’ll be chill. We could maybe even order a pizza?”

    “No friends you’d like to hang with?” Nico teased as he looked for his shirt.

    “I’d rather spend the time with you.” Will said in a quiet, hushed tone. 

    “Are you blushing?” 

    “N-n-no. Don’t be an ass.”

    “It’s cute if you are.”

    “You don’t have to work the bar?” 

    Nico told him no and set down the phone to pull his long sleeve shirt over his head. He picked up the phone again to find Will listing movies. Nico quickly brushed his teeth at his sink. He shoved his shoes on and locked his dorm door.

    “So...um, do you want to come over? My room is three-oh-seven.”

    “I’m on my way.”

    “Oh! Great. I’ll see you soon then.”

    Nico smiled and pocketed his phone. He felt really light as he walked to Apollo Hall. It was a pretty loud hall, like too many instruments practicing. He caught the door as a girl walked out of the building. He proceeded to turn and find a stairwell. When he landed on the third floor he could see the bright blonde hair in the doorway of one of the dorms. Will waved and Nico hurried his pace to 307.

    “Hi, there.”

    “Hey.” They stood in the doorway for a few seconds. “I thought we’d be watching the movie inside the dorm, Will.”

    Will blushed and opened the door to let Nico in.

    “Oh, this is what a double looks like,” Nico said as he looked curiously around. 

    On the far wall, there was a wide window with two desks positioned in line with the glass. One bed was lofted while the other was under it in an L formation. Built-in closets were on the opposite wall from the beds. A lot of the white walls were covered in movie and band posters, local fliers, and chord progression sheets.

    “Dorner is a single?”

    Nico nodded as he shrugged off his jacket and set it on one of the desks’ chairs. He glanced closer at the fliers hanging on the walls. 

    “Singles are more expensive.”

    “Yeah, I got a scholarship that covers it.”

    “That’s nice. I like living with my roommate but I always feel like I’m bothering him. He’s going into music education and I feel like my music writing bugs him.”

    Nico didn’t notice a tv. “So, how are we watching the movie?”

    “Oh, shit. I forgot to mention - Michael took it home with him. Do you mind watching on a laptop?”

    Will walked to the lower bed and pointed at a shelf that hung on the posts of the lofted bed. He opened his computer and went to Netflix. 

    “Cozy,” Nico said as he ducked into the space with Will. Will grabbed the computer and sat down on his bed. He patted the space next to him.

    “What do you want to watch?” Nico shrugged and Will scrolled through his list. “There’s this new zombie movie that I’d like to watch. If that's something you’re up to?”

    “Sure, I like horror movies.”

    “Do you like popcorn?” Will asked as he rolled onto the balls of his feet like an excited kid. “There’s a microwave in the lounge.

    “Isn’t popcorn a necessity for movie watching?”

    Will rummaged around on one of the shelves in between the closets. Nico curiously followed Will out of the dorm and down the hall. Conversation and regular commotion of people became louder as they approached the end of the hall. 

    “Will!” Several voices shouted in unison. Nico looked around the lounge. There were a few couches, a tv, and a circular table that everyone who shouted was sitting around. 

    “Hey, Lou Ellen. Hey, everybody!”  Will said as he made his way over to the counter where there was an oven, microwave, and sink. Nico looked at the six people seated around the table. 

    “Wanna join us?” A girl- Nico figured was Lou Ellen- asked as she shuffled cards. “We’re playing poker, but these losers keep losing. I was thinking of making it more interesting, strip poker.”

    Will turned after pushing some of the buttons and faced the table. He surveyed the players. “Tempting….but I have plans.” He motioned towards Nico. “We’re watching a movie.”

    One of the guys around the table looked at Nico. “Hey, I know you. Nico, right? We have Anthro 101 together?”

    “Kinda. I’m one of the TAs for the Social Sciences. I help lead discussions in some classrooms and grade papers for others, like the 101 classes.”

    “Oh. Thanks for the B’s then.” The guy grinned. “I honestly don’t get half of what he tells us.”

    "Yeah, I know he throws a lot of information in that class. It gets better in his more advanced classes because he goes over specific regions for a whole semester." Nico nervously ran a hand through his hair and looked at the microwave. It still had a whole minute to go.

    "Where'd you find this one, Will? He's really cute." Lou Ellen looked over the top of her cards. Will glared at her with a knowing look. She sucked in her lips as though motioning that she would shut up. Nico felt his face grow really warm. 

    The popcorn stopped popping so Will stopped it before the timer beeped. "Ok, see ya'll later."

The poker group waved. Nico turned on his heel and followed Will back down the hall. "You okay?" Nico asked as Will briskly walked away from the lounge.

"Yeah, it's all good. Lou Ellen can be a bit obnoxious. I love her but geez." Will opened the door and walked into his dorm.

"It's fine," Nico said as he gathered more pillows to prop himself on the mattress. Will opened his laptop and pressed play. He settled next to Nico and opened the bag of popcorn.

The movie was awful, Nico decided. The graphics were terrible and the movie makers had made stupid choices with CGI when practical effects would have looked better and would have probably been cheaper in production.

"Are you kidding me?" Will shouted at the screen as the third person from the hero's group got torn into. It wasn't even thirty minutes into the movie. "Why are the people in these movies so stupid?"

"Well, obviously that guy died so those two could get together. Now the chick won't feel guilty about getting with tall, dark and handsome and friend-zoning that guy." Nico said, holding back a laugh at a CGI'ed gunshot. "Cause you know, boning is way more important than survival in a zombie apocalypse."

"Wow, do I catch a hint of cynicism?" Will turned his head and looked at Nico. "I thought you liked horror movies."

"This is basically a hetero softcore porn movie, Will. With a dash of lesbian teasing thrown in."

"Yeah, it's pretty awful." Will agreed with a shrug of his shoulder. "How come there's never gay people in these movies?"

"Or if they are, they're one of the first to die. You know, I own about twenty classic zombie films. All are way better than this tire fire." 

Will reached over and paused the movie. He turned back "So you're like an actual horror junkie, aren't you?"

Nico shrugged his shoulders. "I guess."

"That's adorable."

Nico snorted. "Yeah. That's the first time that adjective has been coupled with one of my hobbies. Or anything about me." Nico stood and walked away from the beds, stretching his arms up over his head. He felt cramped on the bed propped up against the wall. "Can't you tell I was the weird, gay kid in high school?"

Nico could see the worry on Will's face. He stood up and walked to Nico.

"It's fine now." Nico reasoned as he looked at the band flyers posted around the room.

"I'm pretty positive that your sexuality has nothing to do with how weird you are."

"Hey!"

Will smiled. "Everyone is weird in their own way. Some just have an easier way of hiding it than others. Being gay isn't weird."

Nico crossed his arms, trying to block himself out of the conversation. Will gently pulled Nico's arms down and held both his hands. "Speaking of being gay. Asking you to come over for a movie was really just a ploy to try to kiss you again." He leaned in to make his point and Nico laughed under his breath.

"Smooth."

"I like to think I am." Will said, rubbing his nose against Nico's. Nico reached up to cup Will's face into his palms. "You can say no, Nico."

Nico gave a crooked grin. "I'm not that fragile. Geez - I open up just a little with you …" He pulled Will to him, kissing him. He could feel Will steady against himself and smile under his lips. Nico pulled away, squishing Will's cheeks between his palms. "But if your intention was to make out: we're going to my dorm."

"What's wrong with my dorm?" Will puffed his cheeks against Nico's hands.

"Nothing. Just kind of cramped. I have a couch and TV."

"Oh! Nice." Will said cheerily. "Can we order pizza, I'm starving."

Nico nodded as he pulled on his jacket. "Go ahead and order. My room number is one-thirteen."

"Do you have a preference?"

"Whatever you like is fine."

"Pepperoni."

"That's it?" Nico laughed in the hall as Will locked his door. "Weirdo."

"I'm just a guy with simple tastes. Back off hater." Will joked as he dialed the pizzeria.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you guys think of this chapter, I'm really excited with it! I've kinda got a plot working out with this. It was just going to be a one shot and then ahhh. Feel free to follow me on tumblr @bookiewookiee.


	5. Bellissimo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Please take note of the rating change. It's a smut chapter. It's not crazy explicit but it's now mature. I've put in three asterisks *** before the smut starts. And after that it's smut until the end of the chapter.

"This is really nice. This isn't a dorm though, Nico." Will grinned as they walked into the kitchenette.

Nico looked around in mock surprise. "What? Surely, it is."

"This is an apartment." Will said, throwing his hands up waving to the whole space. "Dorner is an apartment residence?"

"Do you want the tour?" Will blinked at Nico as Nico took off his jacket and hung it on a coatrack and took off his shoes. Will followed suit. Nico pointed to the door on their right. "So, this is the bathroom. Pretty standard. Toilet, shower, sink, closet. And obviously, this is the kitchen."

Nico waved to the kitchenette. Will looked at the counter, it ran along the wall and jutted out as a peninsula to separate the kitchen from the living room space. Two stools were placed on the other side of the peninsula instead of a dining table. The living room consisted of a very stuffed sofa, a coffee table, and a fifty-inch tv. Nico pointed to one other door. "And that is my bedroom."

"How much does a dorm like this cost?"

"Honestly, it's worth it because I don't have to share a space with a roommate and I don't have to walk down the hall to use the toilet or shower."

Will sat down on the couch with a look of awe. Nico grinned and grabbed a game controller from the shelf under the coffee table. He turned on the Xbox.

"That is a beautiful screen. I'm truly jealous."

Nico handed him the controller and walked to the stand. He crouched to look at his DVDs while Will fiddled from screen to screen with the controller.

"Ghost King?"

"Shut up, I made that gamertag when I was like thirteen."

"You can pay to change it."

Nico turned and stuck his tongue out. "Ok, so I like it still." He grabbed a case and put the disc in the Xbox. He stood and shut off the lights. He joined Will back on the couch. "So when's the pizza coming?"

"I didn't finish the order because you kept making a face while I was trying to order a pepperoni pizza. I'll do it now." Will grabbed his phone. He thumbed his phone's screen. "You can start the movie."

"Nope. I'll wait until you're done. I don't want you to miss anything."

Will laughed. "Okay."

They spent the next couple of minutes discussing what to put on the pizza. Eventually they settled on a half pepperoni, half everything that Nico liked on a pizza. Will's phone buzzed. "Your order was received by Samantha. It will be ready in thirty minutes. There. We can start the movie."

Nico rolled his eyes and pressed play. He leaned up against the armrest and curled his legs under him. He noticed Will mirror him on the opposite side of the couch.

"Wow. This is in black and white."

"I said classic zombie movie."

"Nerd." Will said it softly.

"Opening credits." Nico said in a singsong warning.

Will smiled and looked forward at the screen. They didn't get very far into the movie when Will's phone rang. He looked down with a confused face but answered it. Nico paused the movie.

"Oh! So sorry about that. Be down in a minute." He hung up the phone and looked at Nico. "The main doors are locked. He can't deliver."

Nico stood and grabbed his wallet. "Help yourself to drinks in the fridge. I'll be back."

"I can go with you."

"It's cool." He left and headed down the hall. He could see the pizza delivery guy glaring on the other side of the door. He jogged to get to the door.

"Your total is fifteen forty-eight."

"Thanks." Nico said as he handed the driver a five and a twenty. "Have a good night!" He turned back inside.

"Yes. Food." Will said from the fridge. "Do you want something?"

"I'll take a Pepsi." Nico answered as he walked into the living room and set the pizza box on the coffee table.

"These are glass bottles."

"I like the taste."

Will grabbed two of the bottles and joined Nico back on the couch. Nico twisted the cap off and took a sip. Will struggled with a small sound of pain. Nico took the bottle and twisted the cap off. They grabbed a piece from each of their half of the pizza.

"So...I used your bathroom."

"Congratulations."

"No. I noticed the two toothbrushes..."

Nico held back a chuckle as he looked at Will's face, trying to read the emotion. He looked confused mostly, but there seemed to be a look of sadness.

"Purple one is Hazel's. Orange is mine."

He watched as Will's face relaxed as he let out a shaky exhale. "Hazel is your sister, right?"

Nico nodded.

"I feel really stupid."

"It's okay." Nico said before taking a bite of pizza. "I wouldn't let anyone else keep a toothbrush here. Hazel stays so often, that it would be weird. Also, I just haven't had that kind of relationship. They normally don't stay the night."

"Oh."

Nico felt a pang in his chest from Will's quiet tone. "I mean I also don't show them classic zombie movies and order pizza."

"Lucky me." Will let out a laugh that was mostly for himself.

"Seriously!" Nico insisted. Will bit into his pizza. Nico pressed play.

They watched the movie in silent eating. When they reached Nico's favorite part of the film, he looked over at Will. He wanted to see his reaction.

"Holy shit! He wasn't undead! That guy just killed a human. What the fuck!" Will turned to Nico as if he couldn't actually believe that a movie went there.

"Yeah, this is the part of the movie where lines get a little blurred."

Will drank his Pepsi. "I really like this movie. It's so much better than a lot of the new zombie movies."

"You don't have to say that to get me to like you."

"No, really. I like it!"

"I think you're just trying to get into my pants." Nico countered as he drank from his bottle.

"Oh, please. I don't need to flatter your weird cinema tastes to get in your pants. I can manage that with my own merit. Thank you very much." Will moved closer to Nico on the couch.

"Your own merit?" Nico challenged quietly.

Will leaned forward, pressing his lips against the thin skin beneath Nico's ear. A small sound caught in Nico's throat. The sound seemed to encourage Will and he continued kissing down Nico's neck. Warmth flooded Nico's stomach and he could feel his muscles loosen with every touch from Will. He shifted on the couch, sliding down and manipulating Will's body onto his with one arm while his other hand guided Will's face to his.

Nico slipped a hand under Will's shirt and dragged his fingers down. Will shivered and gasped above him and Nico liked his reaction. Nico couldn't lie to himself – he had missed touching another person like this. He missed being able to pull sounds that were positively sinful from glistening lips. And Will was a very willing participant as sounds left him in very unmelodic ways. Nico's fingers trailed down the plane of Will's torso again and rested at the button of Will's pants. Will was practically grinding on him and Nico wanted to very much take off Will's pants.

 

***

 

 

 

He unbuttoned and unzipped Will's jeans and felt the length of his arousal through his underwear. Will made another sound in Nico's ear. Nico gripped Will with sure fingers, coaxing his erection harder, running his thumb over the slick head. He pushed Will up and off of him and leaned him back against the cushions. Will pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it away from the couch.

"Is this okay?" Nico asked with a husky voice.

Will was quick to answer with yes before threading his fingers into Nico's hair and pulling Nico back to his lips. Nico kissed down Will's chest as he moved his knees onto the floor. He dragged his tongue up Will's shaft before putting his lips over the head. Another sinful sound escaped Will's mouth and he tightened his grip in Nico's hair as Nico sucked him off.

"N-Nico." Will found his voice amongst the moans coming from his mouth. His voice was hitched and panicky, but Nico steadied his hip as Will involuntarily thrust up. Nico swallowed, licked, and swallowed again before releasing him with a pop. Will trembled and gave a shaky laugh. He fell to his side and looked at the tv screen then caught Nico's gaze. Nico crawled back onto the cushions, right behind Will and wiped away sweat plastered hair from Will's neck before placing a quick kiss. He wrapped an arm around Will's chest, feeling his heart beat wildly beneath his palm.

"Not your first rodeo, I presume." Will laughed into the cushion.

"Do I put off that vibe?" Nico fought a small bubble of anger from rising in his chest.

"Sorry. It just seemed like on Tuesday that you were a little fragile after I kissed you."

"Is that code for virginal?" Nico asked with a good-natured laugh, any anger gone.

"Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. What's even going on in the movie now?"

"We didn't miss that much." Nico reached over Will and grabbed the controller from the coffee table. He hit the rewind button and played it from about where their attention was pulled. A big herd of zombies were headed towards the farmhouse that the heroes had taken refuge in.

Will pushed his body up against Nico. A small sound escaped Nico's mouth. He heard Will chuckle as he pressed his ass against Nico's groin again.

"Could you not? I want to finish the movie."

"It feels more like you want to finish." Will turned awkwardly in Nico's arms. He smiled and Nico's stomach fluttered. "Do you have any condoms?"

Nico raised an eyebrow. Will kissed his cheek, coaxing him and he kissed down his neck. Nico grumbled a reply. "Yes."

He unceremoniously pushed Will off the edge of the couch and stepped over him. Will followed Nico around the small corner and into the dark bedroom.

Nico padded over to his nightstand and clicked on the lamp. He did a quick once over and noticed there was nothing embarrassing out or messes on his bed or desk. Will moved to him, his eyes dark, his jeans still unbuttoned and slung low on his hips. He kissed Nico slowly along his jaw and neck, while his hands moved up Nico's back, under his shirt. They both leaned back onto the bed.

Nico threaded his fingers into Will's hair, brushing the soft waves of blond. He pulled Will to him and kissed him. It was a slow kiss that spread a warmth through his body like sipping whiskey. Will moaned lightly under Nico as Nico's hips grinded into Will's. Nico's shirt was pulled up and over his head in between kissing. His body trembled under Will's roaming hands. He leaned back, taking in a deep breath.

"You're dangerous." Nico whispered as left the bed. Will turned onto his side with a grin as he watched Nico rummage through his nightstand drawer. Little packages crinkled under his fingers as he tore a single condom from the pack. He tossed a small bottle of lube to Will.

"You're prepared." Will said with a surprised tone.

"So, am I virginal or a slut?" A loud scream emitted from the living room. Both of the boys jumped. Nico gave a shaky laugh. "Sorry, I guess I should have paused the movie. I'll be right back. Take off your pants."

He stopped the movie and searched for a music app while bouncing on the balls of his feet. He selected a random playlist and went back to the bedroom. It was darker now.

"Did you put my shirt on the lamp?" Nico asked looking at his lamp and the dark fabric that covered it.

"It was way too bright in here." Will explained from under a blanket.

"Are you shy?" Nico asked as he kicked off his jeans. He moved under the blanket and reached out for Will.

"No. I just don't like bright lights." Will moved into Nico's reach, kissing him gently and touching him. He rolled the condom down over Nico's erection. "We've been waiting long enough." Will said when he looked up at Nico's surprised face.

"Not complaining." Nico settled above Will who easily arched up to meet him. He eased himself into Will who purred beneath him. Nico's hands gripped Will's hips to steady each thrust. More sinful sounds fell from Will's lips as they moved together; the sounds turned Nico on even more. Nico dragged him up in his lap, wrapping strong arms around Will's back as Will wrapped arms around Nico's neck and peppered kisses across Nico's face.

"You smell so good," Will said into his ear.

"Yeah, sweating like a pig, I'm sure I smell great." Nico strained to say. He wrapped his fingers into the hair at the back of Will's head, pulled it back to expose his neck.

"You do. It's hot. What shampoo do you use?"

"Will!"

"What?"

"That's very distracting. Shut up." Nico demanded. Will laughed. Nico nipped at Will's clavicle and he hissed in pain. His skin was salty under Nico's lips.

Nico's arms shook from supporting them. He leaned Will onto the mattress again and wove his arm under Will's knee so Will's leg laid over the crook of Nico's arm. Nico's hand settled on top of Will's pale thigh, pulling him closer, his back resting on Nico's thighs. The change in angle caused Will to squirm beneath him and release a sigh.

"Harder." Will's voice was guttural and the demand sent Nico into a frenzy. Will's dick slapped against his stomach from the force of Nico's thrusts. Will grasped it tightly to hold it still. The vision of him sent Nico over the edge, he slumped forward and pressed his forehead against Will's.

"Bellissimo."


	6. Saturday Night

"Did you just call me beautiful?" Will asked quietly. He pulled his hand from between them and brought both of his hands to Nico's face.

Nico shrugged slightly and buried his face in the crook of Will's neck and shoulder. Their balmy skin stuck together where they touched. After their breath settled, Nico peeled away and Will noticed his cum spread on Nico's stomach. He looked down at himself to see even more of a mess. Will felt his whole body flush red with embarrassment.

"I was going to grab a towel, but I think we should just get in the shower," Nico said with a tilt of his head. Will sighed and flopped his head back.

"This is really embarrassing."

He heard a snap of latex as Nico discarded the condom into the tiny trash next to the nightstand.

"Kinda hot if you ask me," Nico said, throwing a smile at him and Will's stomach twisted at the smile. "Come on."

"Already did." He said under his breath. Nico laughed and headed towards the bathroom.

Will followed him, awkwardly standing in the doorway holding his hands together in front of his groin. Will felt really stupid and his butt was cold. Nico grabbed a towel and washcloth from the closet shelf. Nico messed with the shower's temperature until he was satisfied with it.

Nico stepped into the shower and held the sliding door open until Will walked in. They quickly rinsed off the sweat and other fluids and Nico squeezed body wash onto the washcloth and dragged it across Will's chest.

"So, um," Will cleared his throat. "The people you entertain..."

"Ha, entertain? I don't run a brothel."

Will ignored him and took the washcloth from Nico's fingers. "Do they also get the full-service shower?"

Nico laughed. "No, they usually don't linger."

"Just fuck and leave?"

Nico looked blankly at the shower wall. "Yeah. Honestly, I don't really bring a lot of them home. I go to their place."

"Oh." Will turned to face the shower head and rinsed the suds away. "Is this your shampoo?" He asked pointed at a small black bottle on the second shelf. "Can I?"

"Yes, it is. Sure, just don't use a lot."

Will opened the cap and smelled it. "Smells expensive."

"It is. So, don't waste it."

The weirdness between them seemed to dissipate as Nico took the bottle from him and palmed a small amount. "Sorry, I can only buy this from a certain area and the shipping is ridiculous. I just don't trust you quite yet with my shampoo." Will mocked him with a higher pitched voice. Nico glared but massaged the shampoo into Will's scalp anyway. Will moved forward and kissed him gently. They both moved to deepen the kiss but shampoo suds ran down and both of them sputtered at the soapy taste.

They stepped away from each other as Will dipped back into the water and Nico wiped his face with the clean washcloth. Nico seemed happy with his cleanliness and opened the shower door. He grabbed his towel and wrapped it around his waist and pointed at the spare towel meant for him and left the bathroom. Will followed shortly after.

Nico already had sleep pants on. His back was to Will as he slipped a t-shirt over his head and Will caught a glimpse of a tattoo on Nico's shoulder. Two blackbirds in flight. He grabbed a watch off his desk and adjusted it on his left wrist. Will walked up behind him and glanced at the desktop. There were several photos out on display and Will couldn't stop himself from looking at them.

The smallest was a 4x6 portrait of a dark-haired man with his arm around a petite, golden-haired woman. He had the same dark eyes and slender-fingered hands as Nico, so it must be his dad. The woman was definitely not Nico's mom. She looked way too young to have a twenty-year-old son and seemed much too smiley to be the mother of Nico.

Another photo was a professional shot and was 8x10. It pictured a much younger Nico with a toothy grin, standing next to a girl with the same eyes and hair as their dad. They stood next to a woman who was sitting down. She had dark brown hair and hazel, almond-shaped eyes. He skin was olive toned and matched Nico's. Her smile was thin but she was very beautiful. It must have been Nico's mom and sister, Hazel. A rosary with dark red beads hung off one of the corners of the frame.

A more recent photo of Nico standing next to a darker skinned girl with cinnamon hair. They stood in front of the Eifel Tower. Will felt a pang of jealousy for the travel.

There was a high-school track team photo, with a trophy raised in the background. Nico stood in the middle holding a sign that said 'Track and Field State Champions'. A tall, blonde-haired girl stood to his left and a dark-haired boy with green eyes stood to his right. Both of them had their arms on Nico's shoulders. All three of them had triumphant grins standing in front of the rest of the team.

"Hey," Nico greeted him as he turned away from his desk. "I pulled out a pair of sweatpants for you."

"Thanks." Will pulled on his underwear and grabbed the sweats off the corner of the bed. He dried his hair with the towel.

"Did you want to finish the movie?"

Will shrugged and moved to Nico's desk, looking at the photos again. "I didn't take you for a runner."

"Yeah, I was a manager my freshman year while my sister was on the team. They," he pointed to the two in front with him in the photo. "Convinced me to run my junior year. It was their senior year. It was a big win. Percy was finally cleared from his injury that happened the previous winter, his relay broke a state record."

Will felt like there was a piece of the story missing but didn't want to push Nico to tell it. Nico thumbed the frame and stared just a little too long at it.

"Did you run your senior year?"

"Yeah, then I twisted my ankle and just went back to managing." He laughed. "I wasn't very fast anyway."

"Went to France?"

"Yep, I wanted to visit my grandma in Italy, but Hazel refused to go unless we went to Paris."

There was a lot of information in that one sentence. "Wait! This is Hazel?" Will asked, pointing to the dark-skinned girl in the Eifel tower photo.

"Yeah."

"I thought this was Hazel." Will pointed to the family portrait.

"No, that’s my sister Bianca and my mom. Hazel is my half-sister. We knew about each other as kids but didn't officially meet until she was thirteen. Her mom couldn't take care of her anymore so dad moved her from New Orleans to New York City to live with us." Nico said wearily like he explained his family way too much. "And that's Persephone, our step-mom." He said pointed to the golden-haired, smiley lady.

"Wow. Okay."

"So, Bianca ran track?"

"Yep." Nico looked at the photo of his mother and sister for a second then looked at Will. "Wanna finish that movie?"

He gave a meaningful look at Will like he was done talking about his family photos.

"Yeah. Sorry for being nosy."

Nico waved him off and grabbed his wrist. They laid back on the couch as Nico went back to the movie. Will watched his hands as they gripped the controller and backed out of the music app. A vein popped on Nico's wrist, it drew Will's attention to the skin around the watchband. Small, black lines on Nico's skin peeked under the watch. A second tattoo. Was he wearing the watch on purpose to cover it up? Will tried to think back at all the times he saw Nico's hands. He watching him a lot as he poured drinks and could not recall a single time when both wrists were bare. Granted he was usually watching his fingers more than anything. He either wore a watch, cuff bracelets, or long sleeves. How had he not noticed it in the shower? Curiosity poked Will's brain and he had to fight the urge to grab Nico's wrist or ask about it. Nico obviously didn't enjoy talking about personal stuff. He shared, but he did not look like he wanted to talk about.

Maybe he'd share eventually.

But not now.

Nico started the movie where they left off. He piled up the pillows and leaned back against the armrest. Will saw the opportunity and wiggled his way up onto Nico's chest. Nico gave a dramatic, exasperated sigh. Will purred in protest. Nico grabbed the blanket that was hanging over the back and draped it across them.

They turned to watch the tv and Nico's hand threaded through Will's damp hair. He played with Will's hair for the rest of the movie. Will fought sleep but the repetitive hair stroking lulled him into a light sleep.

"What did you think?" Nico asked. His voice rumbled in his chest. Will bolted straight up.

"It was great!"

"You fell asleep." Nico chided as he sat up. He stood and grabbed their Pepsi bottles. He walked to his kitchen and put the bottles in the sink. "I think you even drooled on me."

"Sorry." Will called after him. He laid back onto the cushions, dragging the blanket up to his chin.

He could hear Nico messing around in the fridge and cracking open another Pepsi. "It's only ten o'clock." Nico pointed out as he took out the DVD and pointing to the corner of the TV. The time displayed in bold white numbers in the right-hand corner. 10:07 PM.

"You wore me out." Will grinned to himself. Nico gave him a withering look before sitting as Will's feet. But Will noticed the tips of Nico's ears turn red. His stomach knotted at the thought that he made Nico blush.

"So, what do you want to do?" Nico asked as he navigated his Xbox menu. Will noticed how many of his friends had a green dot next to their name, indicating they were online.

"I really am tired. I can head home." Will stood and walked into the bedroom. He rummaged in the dark for his t-shirt and socks.

"Do you want me to walk you back?" Nico asked as he stood in the doorway, watching Will struggle with his socks.

"No, I'll be fine. I'm keeping the sweats. I'll give them back later." Will rolled his jeans up and stuck them under his arm. He walked out into the main rooms. He shoved his feet into his shoes and pulled on his jacket.

"Text me when you get home?"

"Are you worried about me?"

Nico shot a look and Will grinned. Will leaned in and kissed Nico's lips swiftly before walking out the door.

His heart felt like it wanted to burst as he walked back to his dorm. This night went way beyond what he thought was going to happen. He worried that it went too fast, but at the same time, it was nice to just have fun. He looked around his small dorm and walked to his bed. The pillows were still all squished up from where he and Nico watched the movie. He reached for the top pillow and brought it to his face, trying to catch Nico's scent.

It wasn't there.

He laughed to himself at how ridiculous he must have looked. He pulled out his phone and texted Nico that he got home safe. He fell asleep before he got a response.

 


	7. Carpe Diem

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize I've been focusing on this weekend for several chapters. There's a lot of stuff happening~ Sorry this is pretty dialogue heavy.

“Hey, Grace. Are you wearing your glasses?” Nico focused his character’s scope over the head of SavingGrace94 as he spoke into his headset.

“Are you shit talking right now, di Angelo?” Jason’s voice crackled in Nico’s ears. He really liked messing with Jason in the free-for-all battles. Jason sighed heavily, as though he were expecting what was next. “Yes, I am wearing them.”

Nico took the shot and watched SavingGrace94 crumple to the ground. “Really, so you should have seen that coming?” Nico laughed while Jason groaned. Nico enjoyed video games. He especially enjoyed obliterating his friends in first-person shooter games.

“I saw that joke coming a mile away. You’re so clever…” Jason paused and asked hesitantly, “Are you camping again?”

“I do have a sniper rifle equipped.”

Nico heard him mumbling about how much he hated playing Halo Reach with him. Nico laughed to himself again. He had way too much fun messing with him. He missed seeing Jason and hanging out in person. But Jason moved to California with Piper while she pursued her career.

“So, how’s it been going?” Jason asked him as Nico watched him take out two other players.

He and Jason didn’t get to talk as much as they wanted to, cross-country time zones really sucked, the three hours difference made it really difficult to find times to virtually hang out. But they at least gamed together on Sundays. Afternoon for him and morning for Jason. 

“It’s been going.” Nico took his shot at another player. “I uh, so remember last week when I was talking about that guy.”

“The really hot blond that sings like an angel?”

Nico blushed. “Is that how I described him? His name is Will. And stuff happened.”

“You guys hang out?” Jason teased. 

“We watched a movie in his dorm and it was uncomfortable so I invited him to my place.”

He heard Jason gasp. “Did you guys sleep together?” Jason couldn’t keep the surprise out of his voice.

“I don’t kiss and tell, Jace. You know me better than that.”

“Nico.” Jason chided.

“He’s really, really cute,” Nico confessed. The match ended. The scores popped up on the screen. “I’ve never felt like this with anyone before.”

Nico sat forward on the edge of the couch. His stomach was doing flips just thinking about Will. As amazing as the sex was, he almost regretted it. He actually wanted to try to ease into whatever was happening with Will.

“Sounds serious. Are you scared?”

“Terrified.” 

“It’ll be okay.” Jason’s voice was soothing and Nico relaxed into the couch cushions. “I’m happy for you. You met another human using face-to-face contact, instead of that stupid app."

Nico knew that Jason was teasing about the app, he never felt judged in Jason’s presence. But he also knew that Jason was kind of protective of him. They didn’t even know each other that well in high school at first. He was a year older than Nico and was in soccer during the spring, hung with a different group of people. Jason was the first, other than Bianca, to know about Nico’s sexuality, he even guessed his crush on Percy. And ever since, Jason seemed to never think anyone was good enough for Nico. He didn't replace Bianca as an older sibling, but it helped mend the hole a little that her death had left.

“Did you want to play another round?”

Nico glanced at his watch. 11:45 PM. He had a work meeting in about an hour. “I should probably get ready for work, actually. Shower, eat lunch, all that fun stuff. I’m sure you and Piper have plans for the day as well.”

“Are you kidding? She’s still asleep.”

Nico laughed. “Give her a break, it’s still pretty early in California. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Keep me updated on this Will situation.”

“You’re worse than Hazel,” Nico said before logging off.

He stood and stretched. He checked his phone on the way to the bathroom. He noticed new text alert. He pulled it down to, glimpsing a sun emoji - he clicked it before reading the text preview.

_ Is it too soon to say I want to see you again? Can we get lunch? _

Nico stared at the phone. Panic rose in his chest. This was actually a way bigger step than he felt comfortable with. To see a person again the next day, in the daylight. He had to talk himself down. Lunch was doable. Lunch was normal and Nico wanted normal, right? He was the one who originally wanted Will’s number so they could hang out like this. Will put the ball in his court. He was obviously aware that Nico could be uncomfortable with seeing him so soon.

He removed his watch and set it on the sink. He rotated his wrist to read his tattoo.

Carpe diem.

He looked up at his reflection. “Calm down.” He told himself. “It’s just lunch. You can do it. Seize the day." He looked at his phone and Will's text and typed back.

_ I have a work meeting at 1. I still have to shower and get ready. _

_ Are you up for waiting until 2? The meeting shouldn’t take longer than that. _

_ I can wait. _

_ Do you want to meet me at The Hearth and after my meeting we can walk somewhere? _

_ The Hearth? _

_ Name of the bar. _

_ Oh!  Sounds fine. I’ll see you at 2. :)  _


	8. Sunday Lunch

Hattie Adams, the owner of The Hearth, was a woman in her early forties. She wore her dark hair in a bun, wisps of gray hair escaped, but she didn’t look old. When she smiled it reached her amber eyes. She was warm but also pretty no-nonsense when it came to her business. She owned the bar and a family-style restaurant located away from campus. Running both kept her busy and she liked to keep the bar meetings short and sweet.

Nico liked her a lot. She was like a really cool aunt to him. She trusted him with a key and to keep the other staff in check. She often brought up that she’d like to make him the store manager so she could focus on the restaurant. He nicely declined every time because of school.

Hattie stood behind the bar, taking a look at the liquor stock. Nico sat on one of the stools, happy to be the first to show up. Hattie smiled at Nico and asked how his weekend was. Nico grinned and shared that it was nice. Frank practically ran into the bar, huffing, trying to catch his breath.

“I almost forgot about today’s meeting,” Frank whispered to Nico as he sat next to him.

“Sorry, I should have reminded you when you left yesterday.”

Connor and Rachel, the other bartenders, strolled in a couple of minutes later. Rachel sat next to Frank as Connor sat next to Nico.

“Okay, folks. Not much to really talk about. Halloween is in two weeks, we need to get the decorations up and specials figured out.”

“Hattie,” Connor said. “I was hoping I could get Halloween off.”

“You’d have to trade with Nico or Rachel.” 

Nico turned his head slightly to Connor who grinned hopefully. Hattie handed a key to Frank and asked him to get the decorations out of the closet.

“You realize Halloween is like my Christmas,” Nico said deadpan.

“Come on!” Connor groaned and got off his stool to walk over to Rachel. He slung an arm around her shoulders. “So, I will cover your Friday night and any other night you want if I can have Saturday off.”

“Cover my Friday night and Saturday afternoon and I will cover your five to close on Saturday night.”

“Great,” Hattie said as she clapped her hands together. “Frank is getting the decorations out of storage. Connor and Rachel, please help him put them up. Make it look spooky. Nico, I need to talk to you about inventory and specials.”

Nico joined her on the other side of the bar. She pointed out different liquors that hadn’t been used much. “I’ll buy some more vodka and rum, but if we could get these gone sooner that would be nice. And I need you to make the jello shots for Halloween next Friday.”

“They don’t take that long to make. I can stay after close and get them all made and put in the fridge. Also,” he dug out a piece of paper. “I found some bands that would like to play on Halloween night. I listened to some of their stuff, they’re all decent. Here’s the contact info.”

She took the piece of paper and held it to her chest. “You’re amazing. Have I ever told you that? I’m so happy I can rely on you, Nico. If you wanted to be my store manager, I’d make it very worth your while.”

“Hattie. We’ve been through this.”

“I know, I know. I’m just going to miss you when you graduate, kiddo.” She cupped his cheek gently and crinkled her nose.

She turned to her notebook and began writing down the prices for jello shots. She and Nico continued to talk about different specials. Would double-bubble be worth it? Probably not. Nico offered several recipes that used the other liquors and naming them creepy names for Halloween. Hattie agreed it was a good direction and left it up to him to make the drinks and she would try them next work meeting.

“Alright. Looks good. And it looks like they’re almost done with the decorations. Will you help them finish and then I think we can call it.”

He nodded and left the bar. Frank handed him a full skeleton and he took it over to the window. He looked out as he hung the skeleton on a hook to find Hazel and Will both looking in with their hands pulling their lips sideways in a silly face.

“Jeez!” Nico glared at them as they laughed behind the glass. “Frank! Your girlfriend is here.”

“Yeah, we’re getting lunch after we’re done here.” Frank smiled as he walked to the window. He made a face back at Hazel. “Looks like your boyfriend is here too.”

Nico gave Frank and side-eyed glance at the mention of the 'B' word. As he watched Hazel and Will laugh with each other the uneasiness of the word didn't feel so bad. A bubble of happiness rose seeing Will and his sister get along. Looks like Hazel got to meet him after all. He was relieved he didn’t have to introduce them, but really hated that it happened that soon. Sometimes he had a creeping suspicion that Hazel was clairvoyant. She just mentioned wanting to meet Will and then the next day they run into each other?

“We also have lunch plans.”

Frank looked at Nico with a wide grin. “You know Hazel has already made plans with him for us all to go out to lunch together.”

“Yep,” Nico said flatly as he turned on the neon beer sign. They walked back to the decorations box to see if there was anything else. It was empty. “Decorations are all put up, Hattie.”

“Okay, well you and Frank are free to go then. I still have to get the fog machine but that can wait until closer to Halloween.”

Nico put on his jacket and he and Frank left to meet up with Hazel and Will. Hazel bounced over to her brother with her arm looped into Will’s, they were both grinning ear to ear.

“Look who I ran into! He said he was heading to meet you for lunch.”

“So, I guess you want to double-date?” Nico looked at them like they were a duo from his nightmare.

“Only if you want to.” Will reassured. Nico resisted leaning forward and kissing him right there.

“Why not. You’ve already met my little annoyance.” Nico pulled Hazel to him and kissed her forehead. “Where should we go?”

The bar was on the corner of the little downtown area. There were a ton of shops and cafes down the street on either side of the corner. Hazel pointed to the south with a shrug. They started all walking down the sidewalk. Hazel and Frank’s hands intertwined instantly as they walked ahead from Will and Nico.

Nico tucked his hands into the pockets of his aviator jacket and nervously looked at Will. He was wearing his red hoodie under a simple, hoodless jacket. Will looked over at him with a smile. They slowed their pace to put some distance between them and the couple ahead.

“You sure this is okay? Hazel is pretty persistent.” Will said quietly.

“I’m fine.”

Will looked him up and down, with an expression that Nico interpreted as Will wasn’t buying it.

“I’m fine,” Nico insisted. “She really, really wanted to meet you.”

“You talked about me?”

Hazel stopped in front of a cafe and looked back. She pointed at it and asked if it was okay. The boys joined them in front of the door.

“They have really good soup.” She said.

“Sounds fine.” Will said, looking at Nico who shrugged. He didn’t care where they ate. They all went in and found a booth towards the back.

A little while later a waiter came by and took their order. Hazel leaned across the table.

“So, what’s your major, Will?”

Frank looked at Nico and together they shared a look of _well, we can’t stop her._

“I’m majoring in Music with a minor in Psychology,” Will answered after taking a sip from his water.

“Interesting! So what do you plan on doing with both of those degrees?”

“Eventually Music Therapist. My mom is a Country singer so I grew up with music in the house all the time. I was originally just working on my BA in Psychology but I really missed music. So I talked with my advisor about combining those two things and added a Music as my major and dropped Psych to a minor. Unfortunately, the school doesn’t have a Music Therapist degree or equivalent. So I will have to get certified elsewhere.” Will explained.

It was the first that Nico had heard of Will’s wants. They didn’t really talk much at the bar. And they really didn’t share much yesterday, other than the photos on Nico’s desk. Nico felt a burn of shame rise in his chest. He was selfish to not ask these simple get-to-know-you type questions.

“Wow! That’s really cool.” Frank said. “Does your mom’s Country influence you at all? I didn’t get a huge Country vibe from your song.”

“I was trying really hard to make it not sound Country. But I don’t think I can deny my roots.”

“A Country singer in New York?” Nico asked with a smirk. Will elbowed him.

“Hey, my mom made a decent career in New York City. Although, she’s originally from Austin. Fell for a big city surgeon and moved north. My grandma was so pissed at her.” Will slid out of the booth. “I’ll be right back, gotta wash my hands before the food gets here.”

He walked towards the bathroom and Hazel watched as he left. She waved her face. “Oh my, you never said how cute he was, you two!” She slapped Frank’s arm with the back of her hand indignantly.

Nico rolled his eyes as he slumped forward on the butt of his palms, his elbows on the table. Frank rubbed his arm.

“It would have been a little weird if I talked about how cute he was.” Frank countered.

“You know what I mean. So, Will told me you showed him that one classic zombie movie. You know, your favorite of all time. Bold move for a first date.”

“It wasn’t a date.” Nico huffed. “Wait...was it a date? We haven’t even been able to discuss it, Hazel.”

“Why not?”

“Because you invited yourself along to our lunch.” Nico shot her a withering look. “You got your way. You got to meet him.”

She smiled as she straightened her shirt. “It would have happened eventually. That boy is head over heels for your stupid butt.”

Nico blushed and hid his face in his hands. Will’s voice floated over him.

“Did I miss something?”

“Nope!” Nico scrambled to sit up and straightened his shirt. “Not a thing.”

Will warily looked between Hazel and Nico then looked at Frank. Frank shrugged. He sat down and gently patted Nico’s knee. Nico felt jittery like he had too much espresso. His stomach churned as Will gave a comforting squeeze. Nico looked over at him in the corner of his eye. Will offered a smile before removing his hand.

The waiter came by with the food much to the relief of Nico. He and Frank munched down on their lunch while Will and Hazel chatted about her art program.

“Shit, midterms are this week, aren’t they?” Will groaned before angrily biting into a fry. “I have to pick a song for my finals recital.”

“Gotta love the arts. I have to decide on my theme for my portfolio for my finals.”

“Who would have thought they’d get along so well.” Frank said under his breath to Nico. Nico snickered.

After they finished lunch they walked back to the corner outside of the bar. Frank clicked his key fob, unlocking the car door. He offered to drive them back to the dorms.

“No thanks,” Will said. “I’d rather walk.”

He looked over at Nico, his blue eyes catching Nico’s gaze in a meaningful way. A chance to talk together, alone without an audience.

“Thanks, anyway, Frank,” Nico said with a nod.

“See ya around then.” Frank walked to his car. Hazel jumped at Will, drawing him into a hug. She said something into his ear and he threw his head back with a barking laugh.

Nico and Will walked towards campus. Will reached for his hand. “Your sister is adorable, by the way.”

“For God’s sake, don’t tell her that. Sorry that our lunch got hijacked.”

“It was nice meeting Hazel. I got to see... not another side of you, but...more? of you. And,” Will squeezed his hand. They stopped walking as they neared Dorner Hall. Will leaned in, resting his forehead against Nico’s. “I’d like to continue to see more of you.”

Nico pulled his head away and glanced around the quad. A few students were milling about but all were minding their own business. Nico looked at his feet, his face warm. Will nudged Nico’s chin up.

“I can tell you’re a little freaked out.”

“I’m fine.” Nico tried to keep his voice steady. Truth was, Will was right. He was a little freaked out. He wanted to keep Will to himself for a little while before introducing him to Hazel. He had planned on them eventually meeting. Just not the day after sleeping together.

“I really don’t want to fuck this up, Nico. Don’t let me fuck this up.” Will’s voice was heartbreakingly soft. It tugged at Nico. What the hell did Will’s ex do to him?

“Don’t worry. That’s usually my job.”

Will smiled. “Okay, well. I’m going to kiss you good-bye. And I’ll see you on Tuesday.”

It was a gentle kiss but it sent a jolt down Nico’s spine. He watched Will continue his walk to the other residence hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So stick with me for a minute. Hattie=Hestia. So I debated with myself if any of the gods, when they make an appearance, should keep their names or if I modernize them....I have encountered Persephones in real life. And while I recognize Hestia is a real name and probably used more commonly than we thing I decided to change her name. It's Hattie, short for Henrietta which means "hearth".....soooo is Henrietta more "normal" than Hestia....maybe? I don't know. She's probably not going to be that huge of a character so I don't know why I made myself jump through so many mental hoops.


	9. Will Tries

9:58 was the time on Will’s alarm clock. The alarm has gone off at 8:00, and 8:30, and 9:30. He couldn’t make himself get out of bed. He was trying to push down the swelling feeling of panic that seemed to push at his stomach. He knew he was the one that said he'd see Nico on Tuesday. He figured he was being nice and giving Nico some space. He thought he'd at least get a text from him.

No such luck. Not one text all Monday. Now here he was, laying in bed on Tuesday at 10:00 wishing into his phone to show a message.

No message came.

He glared at his phone, hoping that if he willed it, he'd get a good morning text. His first class of the day wasn't until 12:35.

He could text him first.

His impatience drove him to.

He carefully typed _good morning_ with a halo smiley face.

Nico's response was pretty quick.

**[Are you still in bed?]**

Will was in the middle of typing his response when he had the bright idea to send a photo instead. He laid back on his pillow and stuck out his tongue.

[Jealous?]

**[Almost. Coffee is keeping me alive though.]**

Will pouted. It wasn't the response he was hoping for. He took another photo, making sure to include his bare torso and part of his sweatpants.

[Bet you wish you were in bed now…]

Nico seemed to see right through Will's game and without missing a beat responded.

**[Are those my sweats?]**

He turned his face into his pillow and screamed. His body went limp and he laid there for a few minutes trying to think of a clever response.

[Sorry I haven't given them back. They're just really   
comfortable. You might have to take them off   
me yourself.]

**[I almost want to say you can keep them** **…but I bet they're too long.]**

[Are you making fun of my height?]

 **[Nope. Not poking fun. Just pointing out how short** **  
** **you are. Did you have to roll the hem?]**

Will could actually hear Nico’s flat tone in the tease. He wanted to shout at his phone. Here he was try to rouse interest in Nico. And Nico was just deflating each text. With an extra spring in his step, almost fuming, Will bounced out of bed and walked over to his full length mirror on the inside door of his closet. He held up his middle finger while taking a full body shot.

[No. I don't have to roll the hem.]

He furiously typed his message and practically punched the send button with his thumb.

 **[Look who's out of bed, mio piccolo raggio de sole.** **  
** **Bed head is very becoming on you. I think I found what** **I’ll use for your contact photo.]**

[You're a dick.]

**[I think what you meant to say is you want my dick.]**

Nico sent a photo of him in a classroom. The background of Nico's selfie were students sitting at tables with their heads down in focus.

 **[Next time don't try to sext me while I'm in class. I’m** **  
** **in the middle of proctoring a test.]**

Will looked at Nico's face. He was smirking with a red pen tipped to one side of his mouth. Will held back an exasperated cry. He couldn’t let Nico know he won.

[Sorry, not sorry. Can't let these abs go to waste.]

**[I'll see you later tonight. Your abs can wait.]**

Will had worked himself up. He glared at himself and the tenting happening in the sweats. He adjusted himself and gathered his shower caddy and towel. He texted back as he walked to the communal bathroom.

[Don’t take my silence as a victory for yourself.You didn’t win this, I’m just taking a shower.]

**[A cold one I hope.]**

[Have you considered a career in comedy?]

**[I’d rather study Greco-Roman culture.]**

 


	10. Whiskey a Study Buddy Does not Make

It was five o’clock when Nico started his shift. Frank joined him at the bar.

“I’m sorry about Sunday, Nico,” Frank said as Nico passed him a cup of water. “Hazel wanted to meet him. We should have given you two your space.”

Nico shrugged. “It was nice to be able to hang out with you two. I just didn’t think it’d happen so quickly. Like, we had just hung out the night before.”

“So, are you two like a thing now?”

“Frank, I didn’t take you for you to ask personal questions.”

“Figured if I know what’s going on, I can help deter Hazel from asking her invading questions.” Frank looked at him with an earnest smile. Nico rolled his eyes and laughed under his breath.

“You’re just as gossipy as her...honestly, I don’t know where it’s going but I like him.” Nico looked down at his watch, adjusting the strap better on his wrist. “People are going to start coming in. You might wanna set up the mic and everything.”

“Sure thing, boss.” Frank took his cup and went over to the storage closet.

People started filing in and ordering drinks. They sat at the tables around the stage waiting for Frank to finish up setup and read off the sheet. The second performance was an interesting acoustic rendition of some 90’s pop song. He was halfway through it when Nico noticed Will walk through the door. His stomach fluttered and he had to stop himself. Will trod his way over to the bar and climbed onto a stool. He didn’t have his guitar with him and didn’t seem his usual happy self.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” There was something off about Will and it didn’t seem right. Like the universe was wrong somehow.

“I bombed my music theory midterm. I just know it. I’m shit at theory. I know what chords sound good together.  But theory is like math. And I hate math.”

“I’m sure you did better than you think you did. So, are you not singing tonight?”

“I’m not feeling it. Can I get a whiskey?”

“Whoa, you sure about that?” Nico teased as he reached for the Jack Daniels.

Will glared at him across the bar and waved a five dollar bill.

“Using alcohol as a mood enhancer can be a slippery slope, Will.”

“Thanks for your concern. This is my only drink of the night. I’m going to study for my Personality Psych class.” Will heaved his book-bag into his lap and pulled his textbook and notes onto the bar.

Nico wondered if he’d be able to study with all the music going but brushed it off. He poured the drink and took the cash. There were only about twenty people in the bar. Everyone moved around like zombies.

Will took a drink and focused on his textbook. Nico backed off and collected a few glasses from the other end of the bar.

Frank made an announcement at 8:15. “If anyone else wants to sign up, there are slots available. Otherwise, people who have already gone are welcome to come up and sing again.”

Two more people sang and then left. Others followed. A professor walked up to the bar at 9:27 and ordered a screwball.Midterms seemed to suck the life out of everyone.

“Just left my office.” He explained to Nico as he mixed the drink. The professor sat and drank until about ten. He left a tip and shuffled out the door. Frank came to the bar with a grimace.

“Can we please, please, close.”

Nico nodded, he was almost tempted to put on a pot of coffee. But closing early seemed to be a better alternative. He walked over to Will. Frank started his usual closing procedure.

“Hey, how’s it going?”

“Fine.” Will said, raising his head to meet Nico’s gaze. He smiled at Nico and it seemed genuine. “I don’t think I’ll fail this test. So it’s reassuring.”

“You’re the last one here,” Nico said as he cleaned the bartop.

Will whipped his head around. “Oh, wow.”

“Yep, so we’re closing. Would you like to finish your drink?”

Will looked at the half-full cup of whiskey with a crinkled nose. “Turns out whiskey isn’t my drink of choice.”

Nico grinned and drank the rest. He cleaned the glass and walked around the tables. He and Frank quickly wiped down the tables and swept the floors. Frank turned off the neon lights and stage lights.

“I’m heading out, Nico,” Frank said as he walked to the door.

“See you later.” Nico waved.

He plopped next to Will. Will closed his textbook and turned to face him.

“Did you want to come back to my place with me?” Nico asked. He felt himself hold his breath waiting for Will to respond.

“I can’t stay super late.” Will said, look at the clock and reading that it was already 10:30.

“I just wondered if you came to the bar to study for a reason. There’s plenty of lounges and quiet spaces. You could have gone to the library.”

“I guess I wanted to be where you were.” Will played with one of the leather bands on his wrist. Nico reached out and covered his hand, causing Will to look at him again.

“Okay. So, do you want to come back to my place?”

A corner of Will’s lips raised. “Sure.”

Nico helped him put his book and notes into his bookbag. He grabbed his jacket and shut off the rest of the lights. As soon as he locked the door, Will reached for his hand. They walked back to the quad.


	11. Nine is Fine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starts off basically as smut and then turns into angst? Then some comforty fluff.....if you wish to skip the smut find (crtl+f) the three asterisks *** :)

Nico began kissing Will the instant they were inside his apartment. Will responded just as eagerly, dropping his book bag next to the coat rack.  Their jackets abandoned on the kitchen floor, Will’s hoodie thrown in the general direction of the living room  . Lights were left off as they stumbled out of their shoes while trying to make their way to Nico’s bedroom. Nico’s back hit the door as Will pushed against him.

 

 

Breaths rasped against each other’s skin as they pulled shirts up over heads.

“Feeling better?” Nico asked as Will attacked his neck.

“Much,” Will exhaled.

 

Will’s hands wrapped around his neck and pulled him close. He sucked on Nico’s lower lip and Nico felt his body shudder. His hand moved to Nico’s belt. He hesitated and looked at Nico through his blonde waves. Nico nodded as he nuzzled Will’s cheek. Will pulled away as he kneeled. Nico leaned his head back against the door. He tried to control his breathing as he felt Will’s hot breath on his lower stomach. His pants loosened as his belt buckle clinked. Will pulled Nico's erection from his underwear. He dragged his tongue up the shaft and swirled around the head.

Nico’s fingers wrapped in Will’s hair, holding him steady as he worked his mouth up and down in a slow manner. Will sucked as his hand gripped the base. The repetitive motion was calming and Nico sighed. But he needed more. He looked down and his grip on Will’s hair tightened.  Will looked up and the image of Will’s blue eyes black with hunger with his dick in his mouth was almost enough to send Nico over .

He pulled Will’s head back, his lips releasing Nico with a pop.

“Hey,” Will began to complain as Nico pulled him to his face.

Nico gave a quick kiss before pushing open his bedroom door. He kicked off his pants and began to unbuckle Will’s pants. He turned on his lamp and opened his nightstand drawer. He handed a condom to Will.

“Wait, you want me to….”

“Yes, if you’re comfortable with that.” Nico held the lube poised over two of his fingers.

“I’ve never…”

“Never?” Nico encouraged by waving a hand. He set the lube down.

“I’ve never been...only with a girl and that was once. And we both cried.” Will hugged his chest.

Nico smiled and kissed him. “It’s okay if you don’t want to.” He took the condom from Will’s fidgety fingers.

“I never said I didn’t want to. I’m saying it might be completely awful.”

Nico watched him take the condom back with a huff of indignation. “You can’t be awful.”

Will laughed. “You’d  be surprised .”

“I’ll do all the work, then,” Nico said,  practically  purring in Will’s ear. He could feel Will smile against his cheek.

The wrapper crinkled in Will’s fingers. Several seconds passed. Nico didn’t hear it rip open. Trying to keep the humor out of his voice, he asked if Will needed help.

“Fucking hell. I swear they make these impossible to open.”

“Take your time.” Nico backed away. “No rush. I’m  just  going to take this and get ready okay. I’ll be back.”

He grabbed the bottle of lube and headed to the bathroom. He gave Will a couple of minutes before heading back to the bedroom.

Will was still standing next to the bed so Nico stood behind him, encircling his arms around his torso. He ran lube slick fingers up and down Will’s shaft, finding he was successful with putting on the condom.

“You okay?”

“Mhmm. How do we…”

“I can lean against the bed and you can stand behind me. Or I can ride you. Or, like last time….”

“I-,” Will faltered, running his hand through his hair.

“ Just  kiss me. We’ll take it from there.”

Will turned and  eagerly  listened. He kissed Nico and pushed him onto the mattress. They were a mess of limbs as Will kissed Nico everywhere. Nico felt Will’s hand grip his hip and heat pushed up against him. Nico pushed against him. A low gasp resounded above him followed by several swears. They paused, giving each other time to adjust.

“You okay?” Nico asked as Will stayed paused above him. He watched Will take a deep breath in and nod. “Good. Then fuck me.”

Will’s eyes flicked up to Nico to find him grinning. Will couldn’t help but laugh. He leaned forward and kissed Nico, pulling Nico’s breath from his lips. Both of Will’s arms settled on either side of Nico’s head. He dragged his lips across Nico’s neck. With each small thrust, Nico moaned - letting Will’s name escape his lips for encouragement.

It seemed to work because Will thrust harder. Nico found a rhythm for him to work against. Will ground his teeth and pumped faster. Nico threaded his fingers through Will’s hair. He felt Will pulse within him and knew he wouldn’t last much longer.

Will’s climax came with Nico’s name on his lips and shudder. Nico felt a swell of satisfaction as Will stayed still against him. Their skin was wet with sweat and they stuck together in a gross mess. But Nico didn’t mind. It was one of his more favorite parts if he was going to be honest with himself. The sticky afterglow while letting heartbeats and breaths steady. The small kisses. The tenderness.  However  savage the act before was, there was a softness in the afterglow. Nico liked how the blonde looked at him. His eyes screwed in concentration as his chest heaved. Nico offered a kiss. And Will bowed his face away and pulled out. He reached for the tissues and cleaned himself.

He turned back to Nico and gave him a cursory glance. “You didn’t….did you?”

Nico looked down at himself, realizing no, he did not get there.

“Sorry, I should have been more-.”

“It’s okay, Will. I’m going to jump in the shower.” Nico stood and made his way out of the room.

"Well, let me join you, s’ the least I can do.” Will scrambled to follow Nico.

Nico noticed Will look at the towel rack. Next to Nico’s towel was the one that Will used Saturday night. Will looked at him a question bubbling to his lips.

Nico shrugged before stepping into the shower. “I figured you’d be back.”

“You’re so cocky. Has anyone ever told you that?” Will asked as he joined Nico in the shower.

Nico felt Will press his forehead between his shoulder blades. Water ran over both of them and Nico sighed under the warmth. Will's hands ran down his sides and across his chest. Nico  was startled by  the hand that grasped around his cock. Will  lazily  pumped as he kissed Nico’s neck. He nipped  lightly  at the tender skin. 

Nico hissed at the jolt of feeling, that perfect balance of pleasure and pain. Will quickened the pace and Nico had to lean forward and support himself against the shower wall. Pleasure rolled Nico’s body and burst. He felt Will’s chuckle rumble through his chest. Will pulled himself away and left the shower.

 

 

***

 

The water started to turn cold so Nico finished rinsing off. He dried himself and hung the towel back up. A soft glow from the couch indicated that Will was sitting in the living room on his phone. Nico continued to walk into his bedroom. He put on his sweats. 

“Your phone made some  really  annoying sounds a few minutes ago.” Will said from the living room.

“Thanks,” Nico said as he pawed through his discarded jean’s pockets. He grabbed his phone and walked into the living room.

He turned on the standing lamp and sat next to Will. He unlocked his phone to find several notifications. He groaned at the app. He wanted to throw the phone at the wall and never look at it again.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing,  just  this app I’m on. Some guy can _not_ take rejection at all.”

“You’re on a dating app?”

“Let’s  just  call it that.” Nico looked over at Will with a look. Will’s eyes widened in understanding and his mouth made a small ‘o’. “I meant to uninstall it, but it was silent for awhile but I guess this guy is  really  lonely, he sent me some photos too.”

“Can I?” Will asked holding out his hand. He grinned. “I want to see what you’re missing out on because of me.”

Nico laughed and handed over the phone. “I want you to know, I would never have met up with this guy regardless of if you and I ever happened.”

Will leaned against Nico’s chest and thumbed the screen. “His username is ‘Nine is fine’? ‘Come on, quit ignoring me. I’m sure you can handle it.’ Wow, how could you let such a great catch go?”

Nico chuckled. “Keep scrolling. You can see his ‘ totally  hot bod’.”

“Oh my God, I know this hot bod.” Will looked at Nico horrified.

“Really ?” Nico asked as Will hit Nine is Fine’s profile.

“Yeah, his name is Oliver and he is not nine....I digress...does it show how long they’ve been a member?”

“Under their profile photo.”

Nico’s eyes roamed the profile’s screen.  The profile photo was a candid shot of a guy bringing a beer bottle to his lips as he laughed at something funny out of frame  . Underneath the photo were the words _Member since June_.

 “That dick….why haven’t you blocked him?”

 “I don’t know. I don’t block anyone  really .” 

 

“In case you change your mind and want to fuck them?” Will’s voice raised.

 

“No! I  just, don’t. Hazel and I usually  just  laugh at their stupidity.” Nico grabbed his phone from him. “Calm down, Will. I’m going to  just  uninstall the app.”

Will stood. “I’m going to head out.”

“Hey, hey.” Nico followed him into the kitchen. “Don’t you leave here angry. I haven’t done anything wrong. How do you know him? Is he your ex?”

Will’s face reddened. “Yeah.”

“Okay. It’s understandable why you’d  be pissed. But nothing happened between us, okay? Please, don’t leave here angry…”

“I’m sorry. I  just  need to cool off.”

“Let me walk you back to your dorm.”

Nico grabbed his shirt from his bedroom doorway as Will put on his shoes and jacket. Will grabbed his book bag and opened the door.

“Hey! Wait!” Nico said as he scrambled to pull on his shoes. “You asked me to not let you fuck this up. This is fucking it up, Will.”

Will  begrudgingly  waited in the doorway.

“So, you  probably  don’t want to talk about it. I’m guessing it was a bad breakup.”

“The whole relationship was bad.” Will said as they walked out of the hall. “I had this feeling he was cheating but never  really  questioned him about. Then I find out he’s been on that app since the summer?” 

The wind whipped around them. And they both zipped up their jackets and pocketed their hands.

“So, this,” Nico motioned over Will. “...anger is all at him?”

“Mostly. I can’t believe the app thought you two were compatible. Is it like a swiping thing?”

“No, you can  just  browse profiles near you. He messaged me. Every time.”

“How long ago did this start?”

Nico pulled his phone out and scrolled back through the messages look for a time stamp. He could feel Will watching him. Nico stopped at a bench next to the sidewalk. Will sat next to him.

“September twentieth. When did you guys break up?”

“Like three days after. The first Tuesday I came to open mic night….we broke up that Wednesday.”

“Yikes. Well, he’s a douche.  Probably  full of diseases too. Please, tell me you got tested?”

“Like the week after we broke up. VD free.” Will rolled his eyes. He leaned against Nico and inhaled  really  loud. Nico prepared himself to deal with a crying Will, but no tears came. 

“Do you want to come back to my dorm?” Nico grazed his lip against the shell of Will’s cold ear.

“No...I mean I do. But I should get some decent sleep before my tests tomorrow. You need sleep too.” Will kissed his cheek. “Can I ask something though?”

Nico nodded, gripping his phone tightly.

“Can I see your profile on that app?” Will reached for the phone. “I wanna know what you posted that made Oliver so thirsty.”

“You’ve seen the real deal, you don’t need photos.” Nico teased, holding his phone out of reach.

Will blinked  slowly, widened his eyes and stuck out his bottom lip in a pout. Nico groaned and unlocked the screen. He held his phone and showed the photos. He had made sure to keep them as anonymous as possible. Cropped at the lips and angled down. No visible marks or tattoos.

Will leaned in to see the thumbnails, squinting his eyes trying to make out the finer details.

“Yeah...I guess I’d click on your profile too.”  

“Gee, thanks.”

Will laughed. It was loud and clear and warmed Nico even though it was freezing out. Nico stood and danced a little to get feeling in his legs.

“Goodnight.” Will leaned forward and kissed Nico. Nico kissed him back.

“Goodnight.”

“Text me?”

“Didn’t like that day of silence, did you?” Nico laughed and shook his head.

“It was lonely.” Will tried to explain himself but faltered and sent a glare Nico's way.

“I can’t make promises.”

Nico pulled him to his lips and kissed him again.


	12. Chapter 12

Nico tolerated working with Connor. That was the best way he could describe it. He was a nice enough guy, but he didn’t really pull his weight at the bar. It seemed like he only served the females. If it were up to him, he’d cut Connor’s hours but he told Hattie that he didn’t want to help manage the bar so he was stuck with him. At least, it was close to closing and he could dismiss Connor so he could make the jello shots like he promised Hattie. He whistled and announced last call.

“So Nico, what are your Halloween plans?” Connor asked as he turned his back to the bar and leaned with his elbows on the bartop.

“I’m going to come here to listen to the band play and then meet up with Will at a party.”

“Who the heck is Will?”

“Yo.” Will said from his stool with a curt wave. 

Connor turned around and walked over to Will. “Are you two dating?” Connor’s voice rose in curiosity. He wiggled his eyebrows and glanced between the two.

Will’s eyes locked with Nico’s and Nico awkwardly glanced away. They still hadn’t had that conversation yet and it was going on two weeks. 

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re really annoying, Connor?”

Connor shrugged. Two people came to the bar a few feet down and after realizing Connor wasn’t going to serve them Nico stepped forward. He came back to the conversation with Will explaining that the party was at Cecil’s. 

“Yeah, that house has some awesome parties,” Connor said. Nico rolled his eyes and caught Will grinning at him. 

“Connor, why don’t you go clean the bathrooms? I need to start setting up the jello shots.”

Connor groaned and left the bar. Will’s gaze followed Connor as he walked around the bar and towards the cleaning supplies. “You could be a little nicer, Nico.”

Frank sat next to Will. “It’s Connor, he can handle it. And it means I don’t have to clean the bathroom for once.”

Nico passed a cup of water to Frank. “Hey, buddy, I need you to move the tables away from the stage area for tomorrow.”

“Yessir.” Frank gulped his water and moved towards the tables.

Nico moved around the bar, stepping into the small storage room located behind it. He grabbed the supplies that Hattie left him: a hot plate, a small sauce pan, cookie sheets, small disposable sample cups with lids, and a large glass measuring cup.

“So,” Will said quietly as Nico started laying out the cups in the cookie sheets. “Do you want to go to Cecil’s party? I kinda just threw that at you last week.”

“Yeah, I want to go. I wouldn’t have yes if I didn’t.”

“Okay. Cool. I’m going to head out.” Will stood and walked around the bar.

“Hey, no one behind the bar. Hattie would kill me.”

Will pointed at the yellow line at the floor, showing he hadn’t stepped over it. He waved Nico over. With a quizzical look, Nico approached him. Will grinned and kissed Nico’s cheek. Will’s lips left a burning imprint on Nico’s skin. “See you later.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More is coming. Sorry, I know it's been a month since the last update.....
> 
> Hey if you're reading this check out this link to my tumblr, it explains what's going on with this fic. Kay thanks! :)  
> [X](http://bookiewookiee.tumblr.com/post/173800027618/fic-update)


	13. Halloween

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last update for this version of this fic. I'm currently working on a rewrite, but I wanted to end this version on a feel-good beat and I wanted to post something for those of who have been waiting patiently for a next installment. I'm sorry that it's been over a month....again! Yikes. I'm also working on a buffer as i do this rewrite and hope to do weekly updates. I'm not sure how much of this will make into the rewrite, but it's in the vein of where I'm heading. So. Enjoy.

Nico waded through the crowd to get to the bar. The music was loud but the band sounded really good. Hattie saw Nico at the bar and walked to him, letting Rachel serve the other people that had come to the bar. She was wearing a pirate outfit, eyepatch and fake parrot on the shoulder included. She lifted the patch as she began talking. “Thank you for the band.” She said loudly, trying to be heard over the noise. “They’re really wonderful and people seem to really enjoy them.”

“Glad you like them, Hattie.”

“Would you like something to drink?”

“Yeah, just the seasonal beer.” Nico passed a five dollar bill to her.

“You’re finally here!” Hazel’s voice came from beside Nico. He quickly turned to her. Her smile was bright and she gave him a quick hug. “Your zombie makeup is amazing!”

She held up a finger as if to poke his face. He quickly dodged her. “Don’t touch it. It took forever to get right.”

“Is that why you’re here late?”

Hattie handed over the beer. “They’ve only played two songs and have seven more in their line up,” she explained with a smile.

Hazel nudged Nico and led him towards the back of the bar. Frank stood at a table with a tall glass of beer. He was wearing black pants and a black t-shirt, black cat ears. His face was carefully painted with cat features, no doubt done by Hazel. Nico took a step back to look at the two of them together. Hazel was wearing a very cute little black dress with striped tights and a big, black witch’s hat on top of her curls.

“Are you her familiar?” Nico asked with raised brows.

“Someone forgot to get a costume this year.” Hazel answered as Frank blushed.

“I though Will would be here,” Frank said, diverting the attention off himself.

“He’s at a party-at his friend’s place. I’m going there after this.”

“Nico’s going to a house party? That’s a first.” Hazel teased.

“So, do you want me to be social or not?” Nico laughed as he threw an arm over Hazel’s shoulder. 

“Of course I want you to go out.”

“I’m giving you shit, Hazel.” Nico kissed her cheek. 

\---

The band finished their set and reminded people to tip the bartenders. As they walked off stage, Hattie started up a playlist. Nico hugged Hazel. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Have fun,” she responded with a grin.

Nico walked out of the bar as others walked around him in costumes being loud and drunk. The house wasn’t too far from campus, it took him about thirty minutes to get there. He had texted Will to let him know he was on the way. He could hear the party before he saw which house it was, bass pumped loudly across the neighborhood. Nico was surprised that the cops hadn’t been called. 

He walked up the front steps. People were hanging out on the porch, some drinking, some smoking, a couple was making out on the porch swing. The door was left ajar, which Nico found to be probably a very typical thing of house parties. The front room was loud and full of very drunk students that Nico guessed weren’t all legal drinking age. He pushed through the throng of people, some dancing other just standing around. 

He took out his phone and saw that Will had texted him a few minutes prior. 

**[I’ll be in the kitchen.]**

Nico exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. He felt his stomach unknot as well. 

Will, dressed as a cowboy, was excitedly talking with his friends that Nico recognized as Lou Ellen, dressed as Wonder Woman, and figured the guy wearing the toga was Cecil.   
“Howdy,” Will said with a smile, tipping his hat, when he noticed Nico lurking in the doorway.

“Sick zombie makeup.” Cecil offered.

“Thanks.”

Will’s smile just continued to grow. He handed over a cup of questionable red liquid. Nico made a face. “It’s just UV Red and Hawaiian punch.”

“Oh, yum.” He looked down at his cup in horror.

“You’re such a booze snob.”

“I'll just take a beer,” Nico looked over at the different coolers lying around the kitchen. He flipped one open and found a bottle of hard cider. Grateful for something he liked, he plucked it out of the ice. 

“How was the bar? Was the band good?” Will asked, genuinely curious.

“Yeah. They're really good. I think Hattie is going to start having more performances. So, keep practicing and I might put in a good word for you.” Nico was only half joking. If Will really wanted to play for a whole night and had a good setlist, Nico could probably convince Hattie to let him play. 

He casually leaned against the counter. Lou Ellen and Cecil moved closer to him and Will. No one else was hanging around the room, they'd walk in to grab more drinks and then promptly left. 

“That would be pretty cool.” Lou Ellen cut in. “To be able to play at the bar. Their open mic nights are grabbing attention, right? More and more people have been coming in. It'd be a great way to start your exposure.”

Will laughed and turned to face his bright-eyed friend. “My exposure? I don't want to go pro, Lou Ellen.”

“That's a shame, because you totally could. Cecil agrees. That last song you wrote was amazing.”

Nico grinned as he took a sip.

“Have you heard it?” Lou Ellen turned to face Nico.

Nico began to answer, thinking the song was the original song he performed a couple of Tuesdays prior, but Will hastily shouted over everyone.

“No!” He turned to Lou Ellen. With his teeth clenched he uttered out, “No, he has not.”

Nico held back a laugh as he watched Will’s face turn a deep shade of pink. Will grabbed Nico’s hand and led him out of the kitchen, shooting a glare at his two friends as they left the room. He then started to introduce Nico to the other people in the house as they came across them. So many names were thrown at him that Nico couldn’t even keep them straight. Meeting this many new people was uncomfortable but he had resigned himself to this when he accepted a party invite. He had a feeling that Will would be a social butterfly and drag him around to meet others. Quite a few people recognized him from the bar, others brought up he was their TA for so-and-so’s class.

Will stopped walking around when they got back to the living room. The music was still blasting and Will was bobbing along to the beat. A girl in scrubs walked past them. “Are you boys up to date on your shots?”

Will grinned as he saw the tray of jello shots and said, “No, ma’am.” 

He happily grabbed at the bright colored jiggling alcohol. She offered the tray to Nico and he declined. Will ate them in rapid succession.

Nico turned his hand nonchalantly and glanced at his watch, 10:46. He had been at the party for over an hour. He was rather proud of himself for staying that long. 

Will handed him a jello shot. Nico dumbly looked down at the shot and looked back to Will. His cheeks were flushed red and Nico wasn't sure if it was from the alcohol or the fact he was dancing like a drunk lunatic. Nico loosened the jello from the edge of the plastic cup and tipped the cup back.

### \---

“I’ve been thinking. And I was wondering, since we’ve been hanging out a lot, and uh…”

“Sleeping together?” Nico offered. He glanced over at Will who suddenly seemed really nervous.

“Yeah. And I really like you.”

“I like you too.” Nico squeezed his hand reassuringly. “Go ahead and ask Will…”

“Oh. Am I being that obvious?”

“Yes.”

“Do I still have to ask?” Nico didn’t answer and just kept walking down the sidewalk. He heard Will groan next to him. “Will you be my boyfr-can we make this is official? I don’t even know how I want to ask this.”

“It’s okay.”

“I know you don’t like relationships but we’ve been consistently seeing each other for the past two weeks and I felt like that that might mean something. If you need more time, I understand. I just don’t know what to call this.”

“You can call me your boyfriend.” Nico grinned.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic isn't actually finished! Check out Leap of Faith for the rewrite and continuation of Sweet as Strawberry Wine.   
> <3


End file.
